Board for Union Colony charter school in Greeley votes to fire principal

Below is the official statement put out by the Union Colony Preparatory School Governing Board and Executive Director Jim Anderson:

“The Union Colony School Board voted unanimously to terminate Lance Mosness’ employment with the school. Mr. Mosness will remain on paid administrative leave through December 31st and will receive an additional 30 days of severance pay. The decision by the Board was made after much consideration, of which one was Mr. Mosness’ service to the school for the past 10 years. It is unfortunate that Mr. Mosness’ employment with Union Colony Schools ended in this manner, however the Board has full confidence in the current administration to continue to serve our students. The Board has directed Jim Anderson to continue the interim administration plan that was initiated last Thursday until a transition plan is determined by Faculty Council and the Board.”

The Union Colony Preparatory School Governing Board on Saturday voted to fire Principal Lance Mosness in the wake of allegations that Mosness, who is also the boys basketball coach, changed player grades to keep them eligible for competition.

The unanimous vote during the board's regular meeting Saturday at the school, 2000 Clubhouse Drive, immediately followed a nearly two-hour executive session into which Mosness was also called.

Mosness will continue on paid administrative leave until Dec. 31, his official termination date, and he will be given 30 days' severance pay after that.

School officials will immediately begin searching for Mosness' replacement, with the faculty council initiating next steps. Assistant boys basketball coach Michael Neu will remain interim coach.

"The decision by the Board was made after much consideration, of which one was Mr. Mosness' service to the school for the past 10 years," a statement put out by the board afterward read, in part.

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Mosness declined to comment before or after the board's decision.

School officials early Saturday afternoon sent out a statement to the Union Colony community to tell people Mosness was fired. The statement did not include the potential reasons for the board's decision. Mosness was set to earn $81,569 this year.

Multiple sources have said the school was looking into allegations that Mosness had changed basketball players' grades in order to keep them eligible for competition, a point Anderson seemed to confirm during an interview Monday morning. But Anderson has chosen to officially neither confirm or deny the allegations.

The Tribune has a pending Colorado Open Records Act request for documents related to the investigation, and Colorado Freedom of Information Act Coalition Executive Director Jeff Roberts said those kinds of personnel records have consistently been found by Colorado courts to be open to the public.

Lynnette Veik, a physical education, health and language arts teacher who has been with the school for 18 years, said there are no winners in this situation. She said she came to support the school, the director, the board and Mosness, adding that Union Colony is not an "us vs. them" place, and it never has been.

Veik also praised Mosness for his professionalism throughout the ordeal, saying he didn't involve or use kids to further his own goals.

Tyler Silvy covers education for The Greeley Tribune. Reach him at tsilvy@greeleytribune.com. Connect with him at Facebook.com/TylerSilvy or @TylerSilvy on Twitter.

Official statement

Below is the official statement put out by the Union Colony Preparatory School Governing Board and Executive Director Jim Anderson:

“The Union Colony School Board voted unanimously to terminate Lance Mosness’ employment with the school. Mr. Mosness will remain on paid administrative leave through December 31st and will receive an additional 30 days of severance pay. The decision by the Board was made after much consideration, of which one was Mr. Mosness’ service to the school for the past 10 years. It is unfortunate that Mr. Mosness’ employment with Union Colony Schools ended in this manner, however the Board has full confidence in the current administration to continue to serve our students. The Board has directed Jim Anderson to continue the interim administration plan that was initiated last Thursday until a transition plan is determined by Faculty Council and the Board.”